JAVAID Feroze was determined to help fight cancer after losing his father to the disease and so organised a fundraising football tournament.

And Javaid's efforts helped realise more than £2,500 for the cancer research charity Christie's Against Cancer.

Teams from Burnley, Blackburn, Preston, Darwen and Manchester took part in the tournament held last month at Witton Park, in memory of Javaid's dad Mohammed, who in January lost a two-year battle with cancer.

Javaid, of Whalley New Road, said: "My dad's death was a great shock, and the whole family wanted to give something back to Christie's because they were so good to him.

"My dad always wanted to raise money for them but at the end he deteriorated so much and was not able to be active.

"I decided that a football tournament would be a good way to raise money because I have always played for various teams and my dad was a fan, too." Mohammed and Javaid were directors at Lower Audley Tyres, in Blackburn, and Javaid enlisted the help of his pals, secured donations from local businesses and held a collection on the day, which brought the fundraising to £2,500.

The cash will go towards Christie's East Lancashire Appeal, which aims to raise £1.5m for a revolutionary Magnetic Resonance Imaging Scanner -- the only one of its type outside London.

Buoyed by the success of the event, 36-year-old Javaid is thinking making it an annual affair.

"It is definitely something worth thinking about, given the success of it all," he said.

"It would be a fantastic tribute to my dad and would raise even more money for Christie's."

His sister Samina and mum Rashida were at the event to cheer on Javaid, and were delighted with the amount of money raised.

Picture: Rashida Feroze with daughter Samina and son Javaid proudly hand over the £2,500 raised through a charity football match to Margaret Massey, chairman of the Lancashire Christie Crusaders.